Chateau de Malmaison - an empress' manor house

The British Royal wedding is coming up, therefore a visit to a charming empress' country house should seem like a splendid idea.

This specific small chateau is one of the closest to Paris and should be on your list of castle visits when coming to or living in Paris. I would call it 'yet another reason why Versailles shouldn't necessarily be your first pick'. Yes, Versailles is the symbol of French monarchy and a beautiful architectural piece, but years of high tourist numbers tend to drain the substance out of such a historical site. Plus a photo with you and the castle doesn't seem as special when you take it with a few hundred fellow visitors.


Chateau de Malmaison made its way into history when it was bought by Joséphine de Beauharnais, the wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, a couple of hundred years ago.
The origins of the name are uncertain. Malmaison, from the Latin mala domus, means bad house. There's the assumption that it might stem from the bad or poor attendance during the Middle Ages (e.g.: thieves, Norman invasions)


After her divorce from Napoléon, Joséphine received Malmaison in her own right, along with a pension of 5 million francs a year, and remained there until her death in 1814. Napoléon returned and took residence in the house after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo (1815), before his exile to the island of Saint Helena. (from Wikipedia)


Ticket is 6 EUR full price and free if under 26. 
I didn't have an ID with me to prove it, but they were nice enough to just ask me really fast what is my year of birth. 1987 (mille neuf cent quatre vingt sept), with my intermediary French level, went out rather slowly and the guy had to ask 'Madame, vous etes sure? / Miss, are you sure?'; they still let me in as an under 26 year old, but I'm glad to have a funny story and memory of the Malmaison visit...


Gallery:

 

Chateau Vaux le Vicomte, inspiration of Versailles

Vaux le Vicomte is a baroque castle, near Melun, approx 50km southeast of Paris.

 General impressions:

Vaux le Vicomte went straight to number one in our castle visits top, mostly due the unique and intriguing history behind it.

Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux was the Superintendent of Finances in France under Louis XIV. When Cardinal Mazarin appointed Nicolas Fouquet as financial secretary in 1653, the collapse of the State Treasury was still causing great problems for France, and Fouquet was appointed to refill the empty Crown Treasury, which indeed he managed to do. Fouquet had already risen rapidly, and in 1641, at the age of 26, he had been able to buy the estate of Vaux-le-Vicomte, thus having been a rapidly rising shining star amongst the officiers. Nicolas Fouquet's great and rapid success was due to his matchless intelligence and unparalleled daring. To these gifts of a sparkling and winning personality were added abundant generosity, a lively manner and great charms. 

The château was lavish, refined, and dazzling to behold, but these characteristics proved tragic for its owner: the king had Fouquet arrested shortly after a famous fête that took place on 17 August 1661 where Molière's play 'Les Fâcheux' debuted.The celebration had been too impressive and the superintendent's home too luxurious. Fouquet's intentions were to flatter the King: part of Vaux-le-Vicomte was actually constructed specifically for the king, but Fouquet's plan backfired. Jean-Baptiste Colbert led the king to believe that his minister's magnificence was funded by the misappropriation of public funds. After Fouquet was arrested and imprisoned for life, and his wife exiled, Vaux-le-Vicomte was placed under sequestration. The king seized, confiscated or purchased 120 tapestries, the statues, and all the orange trees from Vaux-le-Vicomte. He then sent the team of artists (Le Vau, Le Nôtre and Le Brun) to design what would be a much larger project than Vaux-le-Vicomte, the palace and gardens of Versailles.

The castle's rooms are beautifully decorated; along the tour, in some of the States apartments and the basement you'll get the chance to see an exhibition which puts back to life the most important moments of Nicolas Fouquet's life, with the help of a neat production, using wax models, period costumes and surprising technical effects. see video below:

There's a great panoramic view from the castle's Dome; a few narrow stairs, but you shouldn't miss it. The inside wooden structure of the dome is also quite interesting.

How to get there:

• take the train from Gare de Lyon, half an hour trip to Melun station.
  
  from Melun there's a shuttle bus taking you directly to the castle. One way ticket: 3,5€ per person or 7€ round trip. Departure Melun Station, avenue Gallieni in front of the "café de la gare".

• see shuttle bus schedule here

Gallery:

Fete de la musique Paris 2010

Last year we arrived shortly after this amazing festival therefore missed it completely. Just another reason to enjoy it even more this year. 

Fete de la Musique, internationally known as World Music Day happens each year on the first summer day, June 21st (in the northern hemisphere).

Given that it will be on a Monday, have a good rest during this coming weekend to be ready for a sleepy Tuesday, because you will not be able to sleep through this musical festival. Actually it is not quite a festival, it's something else; all kinds of music and a very large audience: the whole Paris. Professional musicians as well  spontaneous amateurs are playing for free, taking over the Paris streets, cafes, parks, museums and even castles. 

What you have to do is just walk around Paris, take in the music and celebrate the longest day of the year!

More at:

http://www.fetedelamusique.culture.fr/site-2010
http://www.theparisblog.com/125-free-concerts-in-one-day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%AAte_de_la_Musique

Tour de France History

I am writing this due to the fact that I recently discovered a new and interesting event. It is quite a weird feeling knowing about something all your life, but eventually not knowing anything about it... at least until one point. It is the same as, for example, seeing and using stamps all your life, but not knowing anything about studying them or why is collecting stamps one of the most popular hobbies in the world...

My finding out more about cycling and cycling races is not coincidental, as I am currently living in France and the 2010 Tour de France is soon kicking off (July 3rd in Rotterdam).
Therefore here I am telling you a few things about Tour de France, the biggest cycling race in the world, even if I barely know how to ride a bike.

After saying this you're free to stop reading...

Apparently Tour de France is at its 97th edition, quite a history. It all started in 1903 with a journalist's desire to make his sports magazine boost a little; and it worked, it boosted quite well, though it wasn't easy.

In the past the race seemed tougher than now: competitors raced during night time, with no extra gears, evading human blockades, route-jamming cars and nails placed on the road by fans of other riders.

Prior to big climbs, riders in the 1920s even shared cigarettes - thought to help respiration.

http://routetourdefrance.com/tour-de-france-history.html

Back in 1903 stages would go through the night and finish next afternoon, with rest days before riders set off again. But this proved too daunting and the costs too great for most and only 15 entered. Desgrange, the editor, had never been wholly convinced and he came close to dropping the idea. Instead, he cut the length to 19 days, changed the dates to 1 July to 19 July, and offered a daily allowance of five francs to any rider in the first 50 who had won less than 200 francs and who had averaged at least 20 km/h on all the stages. That was what a rider would have expected to earn each day had he worked in a factory. He also cut the entry fee from 20 to 10 francs and set the first prize at 12,000 francs and the prize for each day's winner at 3,000 francs. The winner would thereby win six times what most workers earned in a year. That attracted between 60 and 80 entrants.

Since then the race has only been interrupted by the 2 World Wars, when the rights were owned by the government.

Even if you're a long life connoisseur or just a rookie, like I am, enjoy this year's race!!! it's coming soon!!!

See details of the 2010 Tour de France here

I am now realizing that I discovered cycling while the entire planet is indulging in football... a bit out of sync, but it never hurts to learn more.

Paris Fish and Chips

Living or visiting this very cosmopolitan city gives you a variety of food types. Paris has so many restaurants with cuisines from all over the world, that it is very hard to resist temptations.
This positive review goes to O’Sullivans, a chain of Irish Pubs here, in Paris.

The restaurant menu has, among other dishes, the typical Fish and Chips. So if you’re in Paris and miss Britain and Ireland you can pass by this pub/bar/restaurant/club.

The music is very varied, not too commercial, but not too niche either. After 11:30 it turns into a night club, and guys have to pay at the entrance… but usually you get a ticket which gives you a free drink inside. You’ll see a lot of foreigners around, the waiters and bartenders all speak English (they’re usually not French)...

All in all it makes a good options when you’re looking for a not very French place in Paris.

Le Touquet Paris Plage, France

Trips like these make me indeed happy about France and living here. There are tons of things I’m not comfortable with, but taking trips from Paris is really compensating.

Le Touquet was a day trip; as we were staying in Bulogne sur Mer for a long weekend we thought it might be a great idea to visit both (they are 10min away from one another, by train).

General Impressions:

Comparing it with Boulogne sur Mer I can say that Le Touquet is by far the most seaside like. Boulogne is a bit industrial, unlike Le Touquet it has a harbor, but on the other hand it’s worth visiting for its medieval Fortified Town and large aquarium.
Le Touquet is quite unique because a big part of it is actually in the woods. Close to the beach it looks like the typical sea coast city, but further from beach there are just little houses in the forest/park. The landscape is incredible, and the vacation houses are so pitoresque.

How to get there:

By train, from Boulogne sur Mer we got there in 10 min.; around 10EUR round trip. From Paris you can take a cheaper train Intercite - Corail.
The train station is actually in Etaples, close to Le Touquet, but not quit there. You can take a bus from the train station, which is not very frequent. We had a GPS so we decided to go by foot. There are ~5km from Etaples train station to Le Touquet, but it was definitely worth it, the surroundings are great.

Download Le Touquet map and miniplan here.

What to do:

There aren’t many attractions, this is a place to relax, enjoy the landscapes and have ice cream on the beach.

So grab your beach towel and sunglasses and get out of Paris!

Chantilly Castle

Chantilly is a commune in Oise, France. We recently visited, but mostly for the Chantilly Castle and its gardens. Last year I read in the newspaper that they invested 6 million EUR in restoring the gardens... pretty good incentive for visiting.

General Impressions:

The castle itself was not 100% worth visiting. The ticket was 12eur and we just saw a small part of the castle, the one with paintings. They paintings gallery was great, but not enough. The apartments were closed and could only be visited through a guided tour (for which I suppose you have to pay extra).

The gardens on the other hand were impressive, the view was beautiful. Only thing missing were benches. There are 3 large gardens, one of them even has a few kangaroos, a donation made to the Estates. Close to the castle there is a large Hippodrome, Chantilly is famous for its horse races. You can get another ticket and see the horse stables also.

Even after seeing Chantilly I would still choose Fontainebleau as the most romantic visit.

How to get there:

From Gare du Nord you can take either the train or RER line D (30-45min trip). Station you arrive at is Chantilly-Gouvieux. Ticket is ~10eur/pers round trip.

By train you’ll maybe arrive 15min sooner, but RER is more frequent. RER is tricky if you buy the ticket from the vending machine; because the station is not listed (it’s outside Ile de France region). Maybe the best is to ask at the information desk.

When you arrive in Chantilly, outside the train station you’ll see a sign with the direction to the castle. Next to it there’s a Tourist Information Desk which is very helpful; they give you a map of Chantilly and they explain how to get to the castle.

La Capitainerie:

 This restaurant is on the ground floor of the castle, in the Vatel’s kitchens. It’s interesting first of all because it looks unique and second because they serve the food as buffet. The cheapest menu/formule is 15 EUR.

Useful tips:

If you use Google maps as reference, note that there’s an error: Chantilly Gouvieux station is called Orry la Ville which is actually the one before Chantilly. It confused us a lot as we thought that’s our stop.

Boulogne sur Mer, France

My husband and I love weekend breaks and let me tell you something, living in France sure gives you a lot of traveling options.

We just got back from a long weekend in Boulogne Sur Mer, a small city in northern France (see map). It was a great 2 and half day trip so I’ll give here some tips and reasons to visit:
 

How to get there:

• From Paris to Boulogne there is a cheaper train (Intercite Corail) - around 30eur round trip. It takes 2h 40min to get there. You can find tickets on Voyage SNCF.
• At the train station you’ll have a map so it will be easy to get around.

Where to stay: 

• If you’re in France you’ll always find Accor Hotels, even in small towns 
• We stayed at Les Gens de Mer, a good option for a 2 star hotel. Find rates and availability on their website. 
• You can add these keywords to your search: gites (a holiday house), location vacances (holiday rentals), logement (accommodation)

What to see:  

• Boulogne sur Mer has an International Sea Center, NAUSICAA Boulogne sur Mer, a very interesting aquarium. Not many sharks, but a variety of other species (penguins, sea lions, crocodiles, etc.) 

• The greatest part of Boulogne sur Mer is the Old Fortified Town. It’s a must see. You can take walks on the fortification’s walls; it’s located on a hill so there’s a great view of the ocean from up there. 
• The Old Town also has a beautiful cathedral and a Chateau Museum  
• The city's official website has very useful information.
• Le Touquet Paris Plage is another small town on the coast. It’s 15 min away from Boulogne, by train, so we didn’t miss the chance an visited it too.
• Here's a map of the fortified Town. Print it and stick it together.

What and where to eat: 

• There is a lot of really cheap sea food around Boulogne sur Mer; especially moules (mussels); you’ll find everywhere moules et frites (mussels and fries) for around 10-12eur. 

• We’ve tried a few restaurants, but the best was Pierre Chaude. You’ll find it in the Old Town, round the corner from Hotel de Ville. A menu for 15eur included a large bowl of moules, main dish (they have a very good Boeuf Bourguignon) and desert.    Other reviews, location, their website here. 

Tips:

• The weather is said to be colder in this region. Therefore we went with our winter coats; as it turned out it was gorgeous even though they said it would rain. With our bare feet in the sand and warm jackets on we really had some funny pictures to take. My advice is to be prepared for any weather, whatever the predictions are.
• Don't buy the train ticket in the last minute as you might not find any. This part of the coast is a very popular weekend destination for Parisians as it's the closest beach to Paris.

Restaurant Chartier Paris

We have been living in the 9th arrondissement of Paris for a while now and it was just recently that we had lunch at Chartier Restaurant. This restaurant has seen and known two centuries since its creation in 1896.

We were often passing by, but never went in because each time there was a huge waiting line at the entrance. So one Sunday, as we were planning on having lunch at O'Sullivans, a chain of nice Irish Pubs, we passed right by Chartier. We took a look at the menu, which seemed awkwardly cheap, and decided to try it. There were only two couples in front of us in line and we were also hungry... perfect timing. Inside the place was packed, but we felt lucky sitting at a table for 4. As we were just saying how nice it is that they put us there, another couple had joined our table. It was hilarious. After all these months of living here and we're still surprised when something like this happens. The waiter asked us if we are deux par deux or together; we said 'deux' and he replied laughing 'you are 4 now'.

If you want to get a full taste of the Paris atmosphere this is the place: the architecture and decorations give the 19th century ambiance, the waiters are old school, the tables are small and all jammed together...

The only thing missing is good food. As I said the menu is really cheap, the cheapest I've ever seen around Paris, but the food doesn't shine and the plateful is not that full.

A more in detail review of Bouillon Chartier is given by David Lebovitz, a great chocolate and pastry maker, living the sweet life in Paris.

Paris rats

Believe it or not even the worlds most charming capital has its dark side. The council estimates there are around 8 million little rodent residents here in Paris. What?!?!

And the worst part is that their favorite reproducing time is right about now, spring to summer. Who can blame them? It's warm, sunny and it's Paris.

Therefore don't get shocked to see them around when you're sightseeing. They're mostly around the Seine and other canals. Our first encounter was when taking a nice walk around the Trocadero garden, which is right in front of the Eiffel Tower, after you cross the Seine. About six rats were chasing one another from bush to bush.

Since then I started taking this issue seriously. I also started hearing more people telling rat stories. I will soon change flats, hence my increased worry over this matter.

When choosing a new place you have so many things to deal with; starting with the looks, price, positioning and ending with really finding an available one that suits you. And now, on top of this, you have to take rats into consideration. For me the rats factor goes straight to the bottom of the pyramid. If the building has some, the other perfect qualities do not matter. I can only imagine the conversation with the real estate agent...

From what I see the city is doing their best, spring after spring they launch awareness campaigns, they provide what is needed to fight them, but bottom line is authorities cannot barge into your kitchen, cellar or back yard and do the job for you. The community has to do it. At best they can fine you with up to 150euro if you  refuse to carry out the recommendations - on cleaning up the area, correctly disposing of rubbish or closing up access holes, for example.

For all you animal lovers out there, if you're looking for a tiny addition to your family, we have hamsters, guinea pigs and, of course, Ratatouille.

Cathedrale de Chartres

Chartres is a town, commune and capital of the Eure-et-Loir  department in north-central France. It is located 96 km (60 mi) southwest of Paris.

Chartres is best known for its Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres, widely considered to be the finest Gothic cathedral in France. Since 1979 the Cathedral has been an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Chartres makes a good day trip from Paris, or even for spending the night.

Either by car or by train, Chartres is an hour southwest from Paris. Train leaves from Gare Montparnasse, and a round trip is about 25 EUR. You can easily buy them in advance at Voyage SNCF.

As soon as you exit the Chartres train station you will see the cathedral's spires, and get to it in a few minutes.  

Take walks around the whole town! it is quite pittoresque and very medieval. There's even a marked "circuit touristique" to help you. Except for the main central street, which has a few shops and restaurants, the town is rather quite and intimate. The architecture really takes you back to the Middle Ages. 

Other than the cathedral you can also visit the Centre International du Vitrail a workshop-museum and cultural center devoted to stained glass art. 

Tips:

- have lunch before 14:00; after that they usually stop serving food. Worst case scenario there's a Monoprix supermarket in central Chartres (21 rue Noel Ballay); map

- this Chartres map could be useful:

World Heritage Sites List

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that is on the list that is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 state parties.

A World Heritage Site is a place of either cultural or physical significance.

The heritage site list is a great way to start with if you want to see the best out of a country or region.

  
France:

Properties inscribed on the World Heritage List

Cultural

• Abbey Church of Saint-Savin sur Gartempe (1983)
• Amiens Cathedral (1981)
• Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments (1981)
• Belfries of Belgium and France (1999)
• Bordeaux, Port of the Moon (2007)
• Bourges Cathedral (1992)
• Canal du Midi (1996)
• Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Remi and Palace of Tau, Reims (1991)
• Chartres Cathedral (1979)
• Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay (1981)
• Fortifications of Vauban (2008)
• From the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, the production of open-pan salt (1982)
• Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace, Episcopal Ensemble and Avignon Bridge (1995)
• Historic Fortified City of Carcassonne (1997)
• Historic Site of Lyons (1998)
• Jurisdiction of Saint-Emilion (1999)
• Le Havre, the City Rebuilt by Auguste Perret (2005)
• Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay (1979)
• Palace and Park of Fontainebleau (1981)
• Palace and Park of Versailles (1979)
• Paris, Banks of the Seine (1991)
• Place Stanislas, Place de la Carrière and Place d'Alliance in Nancy (1983)
• Pont du Gard (Roman Aqueduct) (1985)
• Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley (1979)
• Provins, Town of Medieval Fairs (2001)
• Roman Theatre and its Surroundings and the "Triumphal Arch" of Orange (1981)
• Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France (1998)
• Strasbourg – Grande île (1988)
• The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes (2000)
• Vézelay, Church and Hill (1979)

Natural

• Gulf of Porto: Calanche of Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve (1983)
• Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems (2008)

Mixed

• Pyrénées - Mont Perdu (1997)

Ikea frauds - part III

See Part I and Part II

It was 3 months ago when we started the whole IKEA adventure. Soon after the customer service closed the case by letting us know that we would get reimbursed, we gave up the ambition of 'getting back' or 'winning' and along with that the idea that we will ever see the chair. After all it wasn't a tragedy, it's just that sometimes you really feel like by resolving one small issue you'll probably make big important ones go away.

As it turns out IKEA PAID BACK. They've just sent a reimbursement check a few days ago with the exact cost of the chair.
Low or none expectations tend to make the surprise even bigger :)

Weekly dosage of Paris TINY cars

Big fan of funny cars? Check out the entire Paris tiny cars collection!


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Fondue with baby bottle wine

You're in Paris... and of course you want to try the famous FONDUE. Even if the dish is originally Swiss at least the name is French ( the verb fondre = to melt, past participle fondu).

So... you're in, but where to go?

If you google it, one of the first results will be this really old restaurant near Monmartre. "Le Refuge des Fondus".

I actually went there once with some friends from work. I expected it to be really great and that is because I had it described like this:  baby bottle restaurant with the best fondue ever. They serve the wine in baby bottles, they even have a baby bottle instead of door handle. And I instantly pictured it in my head as a really cool restaurant.

When we got there I could see that the cool restaurant wasn't at all that fancy. Really small, as tiny as it can get. I had to climb the table to get to the seat close to the wall. One word to describe everything would be ancient: ancient chairs, tables, cutlery, fondue pots, even the baby bottles looked kind of yellowish.

The truth is the restaurant is over 50 years old so maybe part of its charm is due to leaving everything as they had it in the 60s.

Finally the food part: they only served fondue so the options were meat fondue and cheese fondue. I tried a bit of both. It was the first time I had cheese fondue; and even without having another one to compare it with I can still say it had way too much wine in it. The waiter was an old guy, unique in his way of dropping the plates on the table, making funny/creepy jokes, overall a messing with you kind of guy. 

Menu (meal) for 18 EUR

- small appetizer

- cheese or meat fondue + bread for the cheese one and potatoes for the meat one

- desert (canned fruit salad or french cheese)

It was rather expensive for the amount and quality of food but still I don't feel comfortable saying bad things about the restaurant. Maybe because, in a way, sharing a table with the whole restaurant, drinking from an old weird baby bottle or being able to sign yourself on the inside walls are the things which make this place really unique. 

I didn't leave the restaurant with a full stomach, but I sure had a funny story to spread.

My advice: go with a sense of humor and you'll maybe have an adventure.